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Ombudsperson For Children Annual Report

Chapter 5
School Discipline
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School Discipline
State Parties shall take all appropriate measures to ensure that school discipline
is administered in a manner consistent with the childs human dignity and in
conformity with the present Convention.
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In my last annual report, I devoted a whole chapter on school discipline
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as I received
several cases of indiscipline perpetrated by pupils and also cases of abuse of power
and humiliation perpetrated by teachers and rectors in their quest to apply discipline
in the school compound. Corporal punishment was still widely used despite the fact
that it is prohibited in ALL schools as per section 13(4) of the Education Regulations
of 1957.
This year also I regret to report that I received many complaints from parents
regarding corporal and humiliating punishment perpetrated by teachers of all sectors;
pre-primary, primary, secondary and prevocational. I also initiated investigations
following information gathered from the press or from anonymous sources.
I wish to reiterate my firm conviction that discipline should be maintained in ALL
schools at ALL time. As a place of learning, school should be kept safe for both pupils
and teachers. I adhere to the General Comment No. 8, the Committee on the Rights
of the Child which explains that while corporal punishment is rejected, discipline is
recognised as fundamentally important in a healthy childhood:
In rejecting any justification of violence and humiliation as forms of punishment
for children, the Committee is not in any sense rejecting the positive concept of
discipline. The healthy development of children depends on parents and other adults
for necessary guidance and direction, in line with childrens evolving capacities, to
assist their growth towards responsible life in society.
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38 Article 28(2)- The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child
39 Ombubsperson for Childrens Annual report 2009-2010, pp 27-33
40 United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child- General Comment No 8: The right
of the child to protection from corporal punishment and other cruel and degrading forms
of punishment (2006)
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I believe that:
1. Discipline should be taught rather than imposed on children;
2. It should promote the development of pro-social behaviour, self-discipline and
character;
3. It should respect the childs developmental needs and quality of life;
4. It should also respect the childs motivation and life views;
5. Discipline should be fair and proportionate to the gravity of the misbehaviour;
6. It should provide opportunities for the child to amend, and above all
7. It should respect the childs dignity
From the different contacts I had with people working in the education sector, I
understood that the repressive disciplinary measures like corporal and humiliating
punishment are still being widely used in class. I concur with the results of several
studies which established that children victims of such harsh punishment develop
problems of depression, fear and anger. These students frequently withdraw from
school activities and disengage academically. They also often develop deteriorating
peer relationships, difficulty with concentration, lowered school achievement,
antisocial behaviour, intense dislike of authority, somatic complaints, a tendency
for school avoidance and school drop-out, and other evidence of negative high-risk
adolescent behavior.
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I had a meeting with high officials of the MEHR on the issue of discipline. Following
my recommendation in the past regarding the standardisation of sanctions, the
Permanent Secretary informed me that his officers are working on a document.
A presentation on the proposed sanctions was made. The table below shows the
proposed sanctions for different types of misbehaviour.
41 Society for Adolescent Medicine, Position Paper: Corporal Punishment in Schools, 32:5 J.
Adolescent Health 385, 388 (2003).
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Level Category Examples of
misbehaviour
Proposed sanctions/
action
School Minor + Occasional
unjustifed lateness
+ Disrespect towards
schoolmates
+ Short uniform in girls
school*
1st time offence
+ Investigate with other
colleagues to confrm
if it is really a frst
time offence
+ Meaningful dialogue
between the Educator
and the student with
a view to fnding
the root cause of the
infraction and getting
the perpetrator to be
more responsible
+ Reprimand/verbal
warning by the
educator
+ Ask for apology
+ Complete the
homework during
breaks/free periods
+ Help a friend with a
work
2nd time offence
+ Report the
misconduct in the
Students Journal
+ Inform the parents
offcially
+ Copy an educational
article of reasonable
length related to
discipline at school
+ Verbal behavioural
contract between
the educator and the
pupil
Class Minor + Disruption of class
+ Impolite verbal or
non-verbal language
towards classmates
+ Eating and drinking in
class during teaching
period
+ Reading unauthorized
materials
+ Hindering other
pupils to learn
+ Running or standing
in the corridor while
classes are on
+ Failing to complete
homework without
valid reasons
+ Making impertinent
remarks or responses
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School Serious + Recurrent unjustifed
lateness and absences
+ Failure to wear
prescribed school
uniform
+ Having unexpected
hair style contrary
to established school
standards*
+ Wearing exuberant
ornaments and other
artifacts* contrary
to school rules and
regulations
+ Possession of
cigarettes or illicit
substances in the
school compound
+ Stealing and
indulging in
commercial activities
+ Threatening, violence
or intimidation
+ Truancy
+ Extortion
+ Showing racist/
communal behavior
+ Having a sexualized
behaviour at school
1st time offence
+ Getting the student
on special report
where the behaviour
of the student is
monitored from daily
reports obtained from
teachers
+ Parents be convened
at school to discuss
the misbehaviour
with the Educator in
the presence of the
pupil
+ Make the pupil sign
a behaviour contract
in the presence of the
Responsible Party
+ Refer the child for
counselling
2nd time offence
+ Recess detention
along with a positive
discipline activity like
asking the child to
give a written account
of his misbehaviour
together with ways
of improving his
conduct
+ Rector to give a
serious warning to the
pupil in the presence
of the responsible
party
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Class Serious + Use of mobile phone
and/or other devices
during class hours
+ Repeatedly disturbing
the teacher in class
+ Shirking classes
+ Using improper
language towards
classmates or staff
+ Making graffti of a
vulgar nature on the
walls, desks , chairs
and copybooks
+ Damaging others
personal belongings
+ Damaging school
property
+ Mishandling
equipment*
3rd time offence
+ One hour detention
after school hours
or on a Saturday
morning along with
a positive discipline
activity
+ Community service
+ Recurrent or
repeated offences
to be considered
as very serious and
to be sanctioned
accordingly as
decided in a case
conference
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Class /
School
Very Serious + Sexual assault
+ Aggravated /felonious
assault
+ Arson
+ Use, sale or
possession of drugs/
narcotics and other
substances
+ Burglary
+ Bomb threat
+ Breaking and
entering- illegally
gaining entrance
through force of a
school building
+ Use of explosives- an
act or device utilizing
unauthorized fre,
smoke which presents
a risk of danger of life
or property including,
but not limited to, fre
crackers or freworks
+ Unauthorized
distribution, posting
or broadcasting
of communicative
materials
+ Possession or
distribution of
pornographic
materials- including
through electronic or
other media

+ These cases fall
beyond school rules
and regulations
and are under
the jurisdiction of
criminal/civil law.
+ Rustication
+ Community service
+ Refer to the Brigade
pour la protection des
mineurs and followed
by a psychologist. The
school should be kept
informed
+ Expulsion and
readmitted in another
school
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+ Use (Misuse) of any
type of Electronic
Communication
Device (ECD) during
the academic school
day or within the
school building
+ Misuse of technology
Note:
1. Sentences in bold character are the proposals of I to the document submitted by the
MEHR to her
2. I do not agree with points marked with an asterix(*)
Corporal and humiliating punishment at school
No child shall be subjected to torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading
treatment or punishment
The United Nations has, on various occasions, commented on the issue of corporal
punishment in Mauritius and made several recommendations. Some of these are
reproduced in the table below:
Recommendations by human rights treaty bodies regarding corporal punishment in
Mauritius
Committee on the Rights of the Child
(17 March 2006, CRC/C/MUS/CO/2, Concluding observations on second report,
paras. 37 and 38)
While noting that corporal punishment is prohibited in schools through the Education
Regulations of 1957, the Committee remains concerned that corporal punishment
is not explicitly forbidden by law in the family and in all settings, including in
alternative care settings.
The Committee reiterates its previous concluding observations (CRC/C/15/Add.64,
para. 31) and urges the State party to prohibit through legislation and other measures
corporal punishment of children in the family, in schools, in penal institutions and
in alternative care settings. The Committee further recommends that the State party
conduct awareness-raising campaigns among adults and children, the promotion of
non-violent, positive, participatory methods of child-rearing and education.
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Committee on the Rights of the Child
(30 October 1996, CRC/C/15/Add.64, Concluding observations on initial report,
para. 31)
In the light of articles 19, 34 and 35 of the Convention, the Committee encourages
the State party to take all appropriate measures to prevent and combat ill-treatment of
children, including child abuse within the family, corporal punishment, child labour
and the sexual exploitation of children, including victims of sexual tourism.
Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
(8 June 2010, E/C.12/MUS/CO/4, Concluding observations on second to fourth
report, para. 23)
The Committee is concerned at the persistent problem with cases of child abuse and
neglect in the State party (art. 10).
The Committee recommends that the State party take the necessary measures to
combat child abuse and neglect, including explicitly prohibiting corporal punishment
at home and in alternative care settings and as a disciplinary measure in the penal
system.
In all my past Annual Reports, I drew the attention of the authorities on the wide use
of corporal punishment in our schools. I received several complaints from parents
whose children have been victims of such punishment at school, perpetrated by the
class teacher or other member of the school personnel. In most of these cases, I
referred the problem to the MEHR for inquiry and report. I regret to note that in all
the cases the teachers denied the act and the children were referred to the school
psychologist. Several children who found it difficult to return in the same class due to
fear were given a transfer to another school. The teachers only had to read the circular
on corporal punishment and the Ministry declared that he/she would be closely
monitored by the Headmaster. This means that the children who were themselves
victims were victimized a second time as their word has been considered as lies.
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The following diagram shows the negative effects which should convince us not to
inflict corporal punishment.
I am very concerned as, despite all my efforts, the number of cases reported to my
office, regarding corporal punishment is not decreasing. Since 2004, I have been
making recommendations to the Ministry of Education and Human Resources aiming
at eliminating corporal punishment in all schools. I regret to note that the Ministry
is taking too much time to implement my proposals. I am reiterating the following
recommendations and urge the authorities to implement them in the best interests of
our children.
1. To amend existing laws and regulations so as to include a clear definition of
corporal punishment and to explicitly prohibit such punishment in the family,
at school and in all other settings. I propose to define corporal punishment as
any form of physical abuse administered to a child in a context of punishment
or control.
2. To review the content of parental education and teacher education so as to
empower parents and teachers in devising alternatives to corporal punishment
suitable in different contexts.
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3. To set up an appropriate mechanism in all schools to look into any case of
violence reported by any child against his/her person. This mechanism should be
transparent, accessible, child friendly, democratic and just. Other stakeholders
like parents, social workers, school psychologists, parent mediators, members
of students councils should be involved in carrying out such inquiries.
4. To sensitize children on their rights and responsibilities. They should be made
aware that, for their own protection, they should behave in a responsible and
constructive way. Adults should, on their part, understand and respect to a
certain extent the rebellious attitude of adolescents, as this is part of their
character formation. Both children and adults should be made aware of the
importance of dialogue in the family, at school and in all other settings.
5. To ensure that awareness programmes lay emphasis on the risk of victims
of corporal punishment becoming violent and on the need to break the
transgenerational cycle of violence.
6. To work on core rules and regulations urgently to make them applicable to all
schools, so that the same disciplinary approach would be used in all schools.
These rules and regulations should be based on positive and constructive
discipline principles fully described in the kit on the Prevention of Violence
at School (PVAS). Children should participate in the elaboration of these
regulations which would guide their behaviour at school and that would
facilitate their respect for same.
7. To involve children in the implementation of the rules and regulations as well
as in the running of the school. They should also play an active role through
a well organised and democratic students council and in other instances like
the disciplinary committee, sports committee and so on. Children should
be regarded as partners and not as liabilities. Ideally, the PTA could also be
reformed and include pupils representatives.
8. To develop support systems at school level involving teachers and older pupils
to act as peer counsellors. Heads of school should also involve educational
psychologists and social worker of the MEHR as well as volunteer parents and
NGOs in their plans to support children with disruptive behaviour.
9. To introduce Life-Skills Education as well as Human Rights Education in our
schools to help our children to become more responsible, reliant, supportive
and committed, respectful of the rights of others. I firmly believe that discipline
should be taught and not imposed. Its main aim should be the profound
transformation of the child who would have learnt self-discipline.
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10. To review the content of teacher training and include modules on:
(a) dealing with children having behavioural problems,
(b) skills to listen to children and to detect child abuse,
(c) the referral procedure in case of child abuse.
My offices contribution in the advocacy against the use of corporal
and humiliating punishment against children
1. Kit on the Prevention of Violence at school
The Kit on the prevention of violence at school which was launched in September
2007 has been used as a tool for the training of educational staff. As it was announced,
it was a kit which was to grow in time. Since 2007, the Kit has been enriched. It
originally contained:
1. a document on the characteristics of a child friendly school, on the factors
contributing to violence at school and the impact of such violence on the education
setting both for pupils and teachers and other school staff;
2. an analysis of the negative impact of corporal punishment on children and
proposals of methods of positive and constructive discipline;
3. tips on how to recognise signs and symptoms of child abuse and how to respect
the law which imposes a duty on teachers to report all cases of child abuse
4. a brief on the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
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A document on Classroom Management and another one on Bullying have been
added. Two posters have also been produced and included in the kit

This year two new e-documents have been added:

1. The multi-disciplinary case conference in child protection
2. Positive Discipline at school- A manual for Rectors and Headmasters
These documents can be accessed on our website www.oco.gov.mu
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Bullying
Bullying among children is defined as a deliberate act whereby a child who feels
that he is stronger and more powerful coerces other children by fear, persecutes, or
oppresses them by force or threats. It involves repeated acts of physical, emotional,
or social behaviour that are intentional, controlling and hurtful. Bullying is a learned
behaviour. Children learn to bully others by observing adults and older children
behaving in such violent way.
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The problem of bullying in our schools is a growing one. It affects all sectors from the
pre-primary to the secondary sectors. The pre-vocational sector seems to be the most
affected but the others are not far behind. To understand this problem, we should try
to know the reasons which push a child to bully a fellow classmate. Some of these
reasons are given below:
To defend themselves
To have fun
Due to loneliness
To express frustration, anger or rage
To take revenge
To assert themselves
To get things they do not have
To avoid being the target
To appear tough and target others
Peer pressured strong
Learned behaviour
To be popular
43 www.samsha.gov
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It is clear that repressive measures will not help the bully to amend his behaviour.
This child needs help and should be referred to a psychologist for assistance. The
teachers should be supportive and guide him in a trustful and respectful relationship.
The parents should also be involved in this effort. The child must be encouraged to
apologise and to pay for any loss.
As for the victim appropriate support should be provided to help them to recover
from the violence, specially the psychological one, they have experienced. The first
thing to do is to believe them and not to try to know if they looked for it. Bullying is
not childs play; it has negative effects on both the bully and the victim.
As mentioned above, a document entitled Taking action against bullying has been
included in the Kit on the Prevention of Violence at School. This document will help
teachers and other staff members to understand this problem better. It may also be
used as a guide to them to deal with this problem at school.
Training and sensitizing the educational personnel
My officers and I organised regular training sessions in collaboration with various
authorities like the Ministry of Education, The ECCEA, The Ministry of Health and
Quality of Life and the Ministry of Youth and Sports targeting teachers, headmasters
as well as the non-teaching personnel from the pre-school, primary and secondary
education sectors. See Chapter VII for more details on this years workshops.
During the workshops, the concept of Positive and Constructive Discipline is
presented to the participants as a way of making our schools a pleasant and peaceful
place to study. The CRC is explained to them so that they can free themselves from
the negative perception which teachers may have on the rights of the child.
How can we expect children to take human rights seriously and to help build a
culture of human rights, while we adults not only persist in slapping, spanking,
smacking and beating them, but actually defend doing so as being for their own
good? Smacking children is not just a lesson in bad behaviour; it is a potent
demonstration of contempt for the human rights of smaller, weaker people.
P Newell & T Hammarberg ,
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44 The right not to be hit in Childrens rights: Turning principles into practice, Stockholm:
Save the Children Sweden, 2000 at page 135